thebattalion ● monday,
january 23, 2012
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AMIZ WN \PM ,ZIOWV International Aggies celebrate Chinese New Year
Photo illustration by Roger Zhang — THE BATTALION
The traditional Chinese dance team at A&M, Fruit Mix, practices for the Spring Festival performance on Saturday.
O’Dell Harmon Jr. The Battalion
恭
喜發財, or, “Gong Xi Fa Ca!” is the traditional greeting for the Chinese New Year, meaning, “wishing you prosperity.”
The year of the Dragon — the water dragon, to be exact — begins Monday and is one of the most important animals in the zodiac, representing power and superior control. As many people around the world begin celebrations, the Chinese Students and Scholars Association at A&M has been preparing for the occasion and the traditional spring festival. Jianchao Ge, doctoral geophysics student and president of the Chinese Students and Scholars Association, said the Chinese New Year is as important to most Chinese students as Christmas is to most Americans. “It’s a new beginning for us,” Ge said. “The start of the lunar year is more important to us than the start of the year on January 1st.” The Chinese use a lunisolar calendar, depending on the sun and moon cycles to determine years. Spanning back to the Shang Dynasty in the 14th century, the calendar has been a mainstay in Chinese culture for centuries. “Students need to know more about the Chinese lunar new year,” said Yajie Zeng, freshman general studies major. The Spring Festival is organized by the Chinese government at the end of each new year celebration and it is an occasion where family and friends come together. The Chinese Students and Scholars Association will put on its own Spring Festival show on Saturday. “I think that it is not only important for students, but the entire world to learn more about Chinese culture because China is going to become more and more international,” Zeng said.
Many Chinese students feel homesick and use the cultural event to feel more connected in a country that is different from their own. “When we come here, many of us feel alone, and many people here are See Year on page 7
Spring festival Experience the fun and culture of Chinese New Year with the Spring Festival Show at 7 p.m. Saturday in Rudder Auditorium.
sports
texas
Coaching legend Joe Paterno dies at age 85
Redistricting jeopardizes state primary schedule Robby Smith
Jared Baxter The Battalion Joe Paterno, college football’s all-time winningest head coach and Penn State icon, died Sunday of lung cancer. He was 85. Nicknamed “JoePa,” Paterno’s death comes in the wake of his mid-season firing in November amidst charges of sexual abuse against former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky. It was revealed in mid-November by Paterno’s son, Scott, that his father was being treated for lung cancer. Paterno died in a Pennsylvania hospital where he had been receiving cancer treatments since Jan. 13. Paterno coached for 62 years at Penn State, rising from assistant to head coach in 1966. In his 46 seasons as program leader, Paterno led the Nittany Lions to a record 409 wins, three Big 10 Conference titles and two national championships. More than 350 of his players went on to play in the NFL, including 33 first-round draft picks. College Station resident and Pennsylvania native Maxwell Dallmeyer said Paterno’s influence reached beyond football, with several of his family members and friends offering their prayers to the Paterno family via Facebook. “The first time I ever saw JoePa, he was signing autographs before one of the scrimmage games.
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Joe Paterno pictured in an Oct. 22, 2011 football game against Northwestern. My grandpa pointed him out, and there was a whole crowd of people around him,” Dallmeyer said. “I couldn’t even get to him, but I could see him talking to everyone, signing autographs for kids and blowing kisses. One of the coaches had to actually come up and pull him away because the game was about to start.” Paterno faced criticism in early November when it was reported he failed to contact police after learning of an alleged rape involving Sandusky inside Penn State’s football complex in 2002. Thengraduate assistant Mike McQueary, who testified before a grand jury that he witnessed Sandusky See Paterno on page 4
The Battalion Texas Democrats and Republicans disagree about the best way to incorporate minority population growth into voter districts, leading to multiple lawsuits. On Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously the interim maps drawn by a three-judge panel of a Texas district court in San Antonio are unlawful. The Supreme Court sent the maps back to the San Antonio court to be redrawn for use in the 2012 elections. Texas’ redistricting plan — drawn by Texas politicians at the state and federal levels in response to the 2010 census — awaits approval in a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C. “The Supreme Court confirmed that the San Antonio court drew illegal maps, without regard for the policy decisions of elected leaders,” said Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott in a stateAbbott ment released Friday. “As the justices point out, courts are illsuited to make policy judgments and redistricting is primarily the responsibility
of the state. The Court made clear that the district court must give deference to elected leaders of this state, and it’s clear by the Supreme Court ruling that the district court abandoned these guiding principles.” The ruling comes sooner than anticipated. Oral arguments were held Jan. 9 before the nation’s highest court. Once it became clear that the preclearance process would not be completed in time for Texas’ originally-scheduled March 6 primary elections (since moved to April), the D.C. district court directed the district court in San Antonio to draw an interim map for immediate use. The preclearance process, dictated by the Voting Rights Act of 1965, is designed to ensure that states that have a history of discrimination against minority groups accurately represent the population. Laura Bean, deputy communications director for the state attorney general, said Texas is one of only nine states that require preclearance. “The state of Texas is required to have their redistricting maps approved by the federal government in a process called preclearance,” Bean said. “We filed legal action in the Washington, See Primaries on page 5
Miki Ting Fan — THE BATTALION
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